“There should be free movement. There’s something about the monarch butterflies having freedom of flight and freedom of mobility that many humans don’t have. We found out that in Mexican folklore the monarch butterflies arrive in Mexico at the very beginning of November–right around the Day of the Dead. The day after the Day of the Dead is the Day of the Children, and the mythology is that the monarch butterflies are the spirits of dead children returning home to Mexico. There are international protections for monarch butterflies, while there are children dying in the desert–children whose names are unknown–just a belt found with a name on it. That idea of not being seen, not being noticed made it seem like the migration of monarch butterflies was a great way to put these children’s stories out and into people’s consciousness.”

Santuario|Sanctuary is a documentary theatre piece exploring the migrations of monarch butterflies and youth across the USA-Mexico border. Based on 30+ interviews with (im)migrants, nuns, volunteers, conservationists, and law enforcement in the USA and Mexico, Santuario|Sanctuary highlights the multifaceted complexity of the border. Produced by The Great Perhaps Performance Collective, the development of this production is supported by the Boedecker Foundation Path to Excellence and Naropa University. Santuario|Sanctuary runs at the Dairy Center September 6-8 & 13-15. Learn more/get tickets.